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On the Road Again.... So long Cambodia.
Paul and Carolyn had 2 weeks to see as much of Cambodia as they could and they absolutely achieved their objective. Having worked hard in the village and played hard in 'The Penh' they were ready for a relaxing few days at the beach. The heat had been exhausting whilst working but they were really looking forward to basking in the sun in Sihanoukville; Cambodia's prime beach town. Unfortunately this town was all out of rays... it had been raining solidly for a week and showed no signs of changing - great! After 12 hours of sitting in their beach front guesthouse watching the monsoon rain plummet down, they decided to scrap the coast and head for the French colonial town of Kampot.
Although the weather was only marginally better here, they wasted no time booking a trek up in to the mountains to visit a ghost town called Bokor Hill Station. In its prime in the 1920's this was the place to see and be seen; away from the soaring heat below the mountain top resort was a cool oasis. During the Khmer Rouge regime the village was destroyed and has never been inhabited again. Paul and Carolyn got an open pickup truck half way up the mountain where huge hailstones shot at them like bullets. Escorted by a guide carrying an AK47 (ask no questions!) they scrambled through steep, thick jungle to the top and walked straight in to a cloud! Visibility was nil. Their guide did his best to show them the sights, which were only apparent through the mist when they were standing next to the war torn buildings. The Bokor Palace hotel and the Catholic Church were the most impressive. It was a spooky experience creeping around in the mist and rain like something from a horror film, but they were thankful for their 25 cents raincoats keeping them warm and dry-ish!
Back in the heat below they explored the amazing countryside around them; climbing in caves, visiting Kampot pepper farm (world famous gourmet pepper) and salt farms. Their day was well seasoned! They also took a look at Kep. Once considered the Marbella of Cambodia, this seaside town is again almost a ghost town as a result of the brutal hands of the Khmer Rouge. Large mansions stand in rack and ruin, most peppered with bullet holes. This place really took a beating.
After a few leisurely days down south, they took the bus to Phnom Penh for one last night out on the town with Dom and Benita, resulting in a final visit to their regular bar, Howie's. Next day they headed 'upt North' to Battambang; Cambodia's 2nd largest city to see what wonders they could find! The single line bamboo railway was the first. Formed after the Khmer Rouge, when vehicles were scarce, locals built bamboo rafts to run on the wonky track laid in the French colonial time. Trains still used the track then, so the rafts would have to lift off their load on to the side to let the train pass. Nowadays it is still used early morning to transport goods to and from the market and the rest of the day crazy tourists, such as Carolyn and Paul, paying $5 to ride the train! (Check out their video this blog site)
After wiping the dead bugs from themselves from the train ride they moved on to Cambodia's only winery. This is not the country's strong point and the Shiraz produced would probably go better with the salt and pepper produced locally as a condiment for fish and chips! The Killing Caves rounded the day of somberly. A steep climb to the top of a hill to the village pagoda took a gruesome detour to the final resting place for 1000's of people cruelly killed by throwing them in to the beautiful cavernous caves. The skulls and bones were displayed in a cage, as in so many places all over Cambodia, highlighting the horrors that went on just 35 years ago.
Their visit to Battambang was completed by visiting local village women hard at work making rice paper used in spring rolls. This was hot, hard work for pittance wage. Nonetheless, they seemed happy and content which reflects the mood of most of Cambodia where people have very little but all seem so happy. The Western World could learn a lot from these amazing people.
Saving the best till last, Paul and Carolyn made their final trip in Cambodia to the spectacular region of Siem Reap to visit one of the most amazing man made wonders; Angkor Wat. The boat that took them to this gorgeous jungle area passed villages of stilted and boat houses, schools, bars and shops all floating on the river! It was fascinating to see how people lived their whole life on the water.
Day one at the Wats (say Wat!) started with sunrise at Angkor Wat. The 4am start was a killer but it paid off with only a handful of tourists arriving at the Wat in the dark and seeing the famous towers appearing out of the jungle mist. They did 12 hours discovering the ruined 11th century temples and returned home shattered to meet up with Tam (Carolyn's Cambodian best friend from Who Will) who had come to visit them for the weekend. Day 2 at the Wats was a 7am start (lie in!) visiting the most amazing sites. The 'Tomb raider' Wat (Ta Prohm) was magical with immense silk trees swallowing the temples in their sprawling roots. Big face Bayon temple was another favourite with 100's of smiling faces looking down at them. They climbed hills to see temples and climbed temple steps as big and steep as mountains, resulting in 3 very tired travelers 9 hours later! To recover from so much site-seeing and exercise, they headed straight to 'Pub Street' to indulge in some well-earned Angkor Beer! A free t-shirt with every jug bought, they returned home at 2am with a whole wardrobe of T's!
Siem Reap was a fitting end to an amazing 6 weeks in Cambodia. Paul and Carolyn will miss the friendly folk, the beautiful countryside and the ability to speak limited Khmer to the locals but time to hit the skies and fly to Vietnam, starting at the vibrant Ho Chi Min city. "The horror......"
Bye for now...
Love Alan (Carolyn & Paul x)
- comments
Kate am always amazed at how much you guys pack in and how many brilliant things you are doing - the jealousy never ends! your adventure continues.....bet you dont want to come home!! still missing you tonnes xxx
Sam Fascinated as always with your adventures!! Boy you've sweated some and seen some rain!! Love the pink and blue rain macs! Glad to hear that Alan has fitted into Judiths shoes very well. My news - I went away with with work last week, all expenses paid to Paris. Had a great time, very posh hotel. Greg and Sandrines wedding was yesterday at wokingham registry then in a local pub - was a great day. Sandrine looked lovely. All the family came in the evening - your dad ended up dancing with Sandrines mum and I've got the pictures to prove it! We even had an auction for Sandrine to raise her garter higher or lower then the winning man removed it with his teeth! Lucy and Sean asked Hannah if she would like to be their flower girl at their wedding so I duly bawled my eyes out. She was so thrilled and even asked me if she could have a new dress and shoes for the occasion (not realizing she would have a bridesmaids dress). When I explained she was sooooo excited! (bless her). Love you, take care Sam xxx